The present invention relates to the mounting of a radiator on the chassis of a vehicle and is particularly applicable to vehicles, such as tractors, where access to the opposite side of the support member onto which the radiator is to be mounted is restricted.
The chassis in a tractor is commonly formed by the engine block and transmission housing. A bolster or front support member is secured to the front end of the engine and forms a structural part of the chassis which projects forward of the engine block. This bolster may be used to attach an implement to the front end of the tractor and often carries heavy blocks to weigh down the front end of the tractor.
The bolster is also used to support the radiator of the engine cooling system. For this purpose, bores are provided in the bolster and the radiator is secured by means of bolts that are screwed from the underside of the bolster into legs of the radiator.
A difficulty encountered in mounting a radiator in this manner is caused by the fact that the bolster is located above the front axle of the tractor. Access to its underside, to allow the bolts to be screwed into the radiator legs, is severely restricted by the front axle and this precludes the use of power tools. As a result, mounting the radiator on its support member in a tractor has hitherto proved to be a cumbersome and time-consuming task.
With a view to mitigating the foregoing disadvantage, the present invention provides in accordance with a first aspect, a method of mounting a radiator onto a support member in a vehicle, which comprises the steps of securing to the radiator a collar having a reduced diameter portion or a groove that defines a shoulder facing towards the radiator, providing a groove or reduced diameter portion in the inner surface of a radiator mounting bore formed in the support member to define a second shoulder facing away from the radiator, positioning a spring clip against one of the shoulders on the collar and the bore and inserting the collar into the bore, the spring clip being compressed radially during insertion of the collar into the bore and being released after full insertion of the collar into the bore to abut both shoulders and prevent withdrawal of the collar from the bore.
In its broadest aspect, the invention proposes mounting a radiator on the support member using a locking mechanism analogous to those adopted in security seals that are used to prevent tampering with shipping containers and trailers. Such seals, one example of which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,883, have a metal bolt which can be inserted into a lock body and once so inserted cannot be separated from the lock body. The bore in the lock body has an internal groove within which there sits a spring clip. The end of the bolt is tapered so that as it is inserted into the lock body, the spring clip expands into the groove and does not impede insertion of the bolt. The bolt also has a groove on its outer surface which on reaching the spring clip releases compression forces on the latter. The spring clip then expands and prevents withdrawal of the bolt from the lock body.
This form of secure fixing is used in the present invention to allow a radiator to be mounted on its support member by assembling retaining collars on the legs or mounting points of the radiator and then pushing the collars into the bores in the support member until the spring clips engage. This simple operation does not require access to the opposite side of the support member for the purpose of assembling the radiator on the support member.
To hold the radiator in place, it is only necessary to prevent it from being pulled out of the bore in the support member and for this purpose it suffices to have just two opposed shoulders straddling the spring clip. However, in order to retain the spring clip in position, it is preferred for one of the shoulders to be defined by means of a groove slightly wider than the spring clip. It is still further preferred for both shoulders to be defined by grooves only slightly wider than the spring clip as this allows the spring clip to prevent movement of the radiator in both directions.
Though the radiator cannot be pulled away from the support member, if the retaining collar is bolted onto the radiator then the radiator can be removed from the support member by unbolting the collar from the radiator. This allows the radiator to be separated from the support member while leaving the collar in place. Such removal would require tool access to the opposite side of the support member.
In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of mounting a radiator onto a support member in a vehicle, the method comprising the steps of securing to the radiator a resilient mounting bush having a first annular groove in its outer surface, providing a second annular groove in the inner surface of a radiator mounting bore formed in the support member, positioning a spring clip in one of the two annular grooves and inserting the bush into the bore, the spring clip being compressed radially during insertion of the bush into the bore and being released when the annular grooves are axially aligned with one another to lock the bush within the bore.
In this aspect of the invention, the mounting collar forms part of a resilient mounting bush serving to absorb shocks and vibrations. Resilient mounts and bushes have been used to support radiators on vehicle bodies and examples of such mounts are shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,467 or U.S. Pat. No. 5,785,140. In its second aspect, the invention succeeds in combining the advantages of a resilient mounting with ease of assembly and mounting.
According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a vehicle having a radiator mounted on a support member, wherein the radiator is fitted with a retaining collar having a first annular groove in its outer surface, the support member has a radiator mounting bore within which the retaining collar is received, the wall of which mounting bore is formed with a second annular groove, and a spring clip engages within both grooves to prevent the radiator from being separated from the support member.
Advantageously, the collar is the outer collar of a resilient bush which additionally comprises an inner sleeve and a rubber molding separating the inner sleeve from the outer collar.
The rubber molding is preferably shaped to make direct contact additionally with the radiator body and the wall of the bore in the support member. It is further preferred to interpose a washer between the end of the inner sleeve and the head of a bolt or a nut serving to secure the retaining collar to the radiator and to shape the rubber molding to make direct contact with the washer.
These and other objects, features and advantages are accomplished according to the instant invention by providing a method of mounting a radiator onto a support member in a vehicle including the steps of securing to the radiator a resilient mounting bush having a first annular groove in its outer surface, providing a second annular groove in the inner surface of a radiator mounting bore formed in the support member, positioning a spring clip in one of the two annular grooves and inserting the bush into the bore, the spring clip being compressed radially during insertion of the bush into the bore and being released when the annular grooves are axially aligned with one another to lock the bush within the bore.